The present invention relates to a neck harness for suspending an object from a users neck and, more particularly, to an improved single strap-support neck harness for receiving, e.g., a scanner or other electronic device for use in listening to radio transmissions at racing events.
Generally, prior art neck harnesses comprise a framework supported by a flaccid neck strap that are designed to allow electronic equipment to be suspended from a user's neck. For example, Waltzer, U.S. Pat. No. 4,537,340, discloses a harness for a radio control module associated with a radio controlled model aircraft. The harness has an adjustable flaccid neck strap for supporting a bracket for receiving the radio control module. A brace member of the bracket is held in place against the abdomen by the palms of the user. The two ends of the strap are attached to the bracket at spaced attachment pins on the brace member. An additional feature includes auxiliary straps extending from the neck strap to a round eyelet on the bracket spaced from the brace member. This additional strap supports the bracket from tilting, and to some extent, lessens the role of the hands.
In another prior art patent, Plonk, U.S. Pat. No. 5,186,375, a harness is disclosed for computers used by utility meter readers. The harness has a flaccid neck strap attached to a rectangular bracket for receiving a computer. The neck strap is shown fastened to opposite diagonal corners of the bracket, and alternatively, can be fastened to any two of the four corners. Plonk also discloses a plate that depends from the rear edge of the bracket and that is inserted into the waistband of the trousers of a user for bracing the bracket against the body. By anchoring the plate to the trousers, the plate supports the bracket and stabilizes it from tilting.
A problem with prior art harnesses that utilize only one supporting neck strap, and that do not utilize further support means such as auxiliary straps or plates, is the susceptibility of the bracket of the harness to slipping away from a user's body or tilting out of its original orientation. Those harnesses that do utilize complicated harness frameworks, like the auxiliary strap in Waltzer and the trouser supporting plate in Plonk, are cumbersome in practice. There thus exists a need for a simple yet effective single strap-support harness that provides against slippage of the bracket away from the body of a user, or tilting out of its orientation.
Furthermore, there exists a need for a harness that is stable when a user is in both a sitting position and a standing position, and all positions therebetween. The prior art harnesses discussed above are disclosed as practiced in a standing position, and would be cumbersome or ineffective when used in a sitting position and in changing between sitting and standing positions. For example, the harness disclosed in Waltzer would be disrupted by a user's thighs in a sitting position and any support of the harness by the thighs would cause the auxiliary strap to become limp. Suddenly arising to a standing position would consequently cause the harness to undergo a quick snapping motion that could dislodge a contained object within the harness, thereby throwing it to the ground; as the support of the legs falls away, the front of the bracket rotates downward about the bracing member until the auxiliary strap suddenly becomes taut, thereby producing a sudden jar.
This need for a stable harness arises especially in the case where fans in the grandstands scan radio transmissions of racing teams at racing events. It is common for fans to program scanners so that car 43, for example, will be scanned on channel 43 of the scanner, and so on. Then, when at racing events, fans can monitor their scanners for radio transmissions between the pit crews and race car drivers. Since a scanner typically displays the current channel being scanned, when a transmission is received by the scanner a fan need only glance at the scanner to determine which team is making the broadcast, with channel 43 corresponds with car 43, etc. Seating at such events is very close and tight, however, and it is often undesirable to simply hold a scanner in hand and watch the race, especially if one desires to consume beverages and concessions. There literally is no room between spectators for resting scanners when wishing to free use of the hands.
To alleviate this problem, some fans have attempted the use of a strap for attaching scanners to their thighs for hands-free monitoring. This strap is adequate when fans are in a sitting position because they need only glance down at their thigh to view the channel, and hence racing team, being scanned. However, often people stand when there is an occurrence such as a crash in the race, and those with scanners must bend over to read their scanners when standing. The situation is even more problematic in practice because there is usually a great amount of radio transmissions when an occurrence such as a crash happens. Furthermore, if the scanner is not securely fastened, then when a fan rapidly stands a strapped scanner may dislodge and fall to the ground.
There thus is a special need for a single strap-support neck harness that provides easy viewing of a scanner or other electronic device when monitoring radio transmissions at racing events. Furthermore, not only must the neck harness provide convenient and easy viewing of the scanner channel being scanned, but it must also provide stability when a fan rapidly rises for an event and then returns to his seat. The harness should also be unencumbersome and function without requiring use of the hands, auxiliary support straps, or support plates.